John 10:40-11:6 (NIV)
Then Jesus went back across the Jordan to the place where John had been baptizing in the early days. Here he stayed and many people came to him. They said, “Though John never performed a miraculous sign, all that John said about this man was true.” And in that place many believed in Jesus.
Now a man named Lazarus was sick. He was from Bethany, the village of Mary and her sister Martha. This Mary, whose brother Lazarus now lay sick, was the same one who poured perfume on the Lord and wiped his feet with her hair. So the sisters sent word to Jesus, “Lord, the one you love is sick.”
When he heard this, Jesus said, “This sickness will not end in death. No, it is for God’s glory so that God’s Son may be glorified through it.” Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus. Yet when he heard that Lazarus was sick, he stayed where he was two more days.
These days people take most illnesses very casually, but until quite recently, until the advent of antibiotics, even something as relatively minor as a cold was considered dangerous, because it could quickly turn into pneumonia, and that could very quickly turn deadly.
In this case, Lazarus’ condition deteriorated very quickly and became desperate. At that point, his sisters sent a messenger to find Jesus and ask Him to come and help. There was no doubt in their minds that Jesus could provide healing for Lazarus, no matter how serious the illness was. But Lazarus was losing ground so rapidly that they were fearful that Jesus wouldn’t arrive in time.
Jesus had left Jerusalem a few weeks earlier and had set up camp on the east side of the Jordan, near the very spot where He had been baptized by John four years earlier. It was there that Martha’s messenger found Him preaching, teaching, and healing the crowds who surrounded Him there.
The news was urgent: Lazarus was very ill. The plea was clear: come and heal him. But Jesus knew immediately what God’s plan was in this whole affair. Even though He had a deep love for Mary, Marth, and Lazarus, he knew that God had plans that went far beyond this illness that was threatening their family. In fact, He knew that at the point He received the message, Lazarus had, in fact, just died.
For Jesus and His agenda, timing was all-important. Even in this hopeless situation, there was a miracle to be done, a lesson to be taught about life and death, about resurrection and the kingdom of God, and about the limitlessness of God’s power. So, instead of packing up immediately, He stayed and worked where He was until the Father gave Him the signal to go.
Some might be troubled by Jesus’ statement that this sickness would not end in death, especially realizing that it was spoken after Lazarus had already died. But Jesus was talking about the end game that He knew was coming. Even though Lazarus was now dead, when all had been accomplished, He would be alive and well again.
Father, talk about a hopeless situation! As humans, we tend to draw a line in time after which we figure that there is no hope left, so we quit praying, and just accept whatever comes. But with You, there is always hope as long as YOU say that there is more that You want to do. Lord, help us to not merely pray in our times of need, but to listen to You at those times as well, and to never give up, never lose hope as long as You haven’t said stop. Amen.